Swarming UAV attacks present a rapidly evolving threat to surface warships, demanding new approaches to survivability and damage control. Using simulation-based vulnerability analysis, this research examines the effects of multiple simultaneous strikes, revealing critical weaknesses, resilience measures and operational challenges that could shape future naval protection strategies and combat readiness.

Large Uncrewed Surface Vessels could add transformative scale, endurance and flexibility to future naval fleets. This vision assesses key challenges spanning autonomy, command and control, sensor management, resilience, logistics and modularity, outlining a practical technology roadmap and demonstrating how mixed crewed-uncrewed forces could deliver affordable, sustainable and operationally effective maritime capability.

Combat Safety is emerging as a cornerstone of modern warship design, providing a structured framework to meet legal duties of care while enhancing survivability. Focusing on susceptibility, vulnerability and recoverability, the approach embeds survivability throughout design development, using advanced assessment tools to protect crews, sustain combat capability and improve resilience against evolving threats.

Digital twins are redefining future surface combatants by creating real-time virtual counterparts that fuse AI, sensor networks and advanced analytics. By revealing deeper insights into structural performance, propulsion and mission readiness, these technologies enable smarter decisions, predictive maintenance and greater resilience, offering a compelling vision for next-generation naval capability development.

As naval platforms grow larger, costlier and more strategically important, protecting them from avoidable damage is becoming a mission-critical priority. This analysis highlights how structured docking qualification programmes reduce operational risk, safeguard fleet availability and support future sustainment demands, including the maintenance of Australia’s next-generation nuclear-powered submarine capability.

Future naval fleets may look radically different as emerging warship concepts challenge traditional design assumptions. By examining the drivers behind revolutionary platform development and the technologies used to evaluate and validate innovation, this analysis explores how navies can confidently adopt transformative capabilities while managing risk, complexity and operational effectiveness demands.

Modern naval habitability standards are raising expectations for crew welfare, space and wellbeing, yet growing platform capability often drives larger crews and increasing design pressures. This analysis highlights the complex trade-offs between crewing policy, automation and ship design, revealing how personnel decisions can significantly influence displacement, endurance, range and overall operational effectiveness.

Singapore’s Multi Role Combat Vessel demonstrates how international collaboration, integrated project management and advanced engineering can accelerate complex naval programmes. Designed as a mothership for uncrewed systems with future-ready electric propulsion, the project delivered a class-certified basic design on an ambitious schedule, offering valuable lessons for next-generation warship development globally.

Digital visualisation and modelling are reshaping structural lifecycle management by turning complex engineering data into actionable insight. This paper explores practical methods for optimising hull structures through service life, highlighting how accessible visualisation tools, data-driven decision-making and cross-sector best practices can improve maintenance planning, stakeholder engagement and long-term asset performance.

Australia’s sovereign naval ship design capability is taking shape through targeted investment, stakeholder collaboration and strategic technology development. Using the Littoral Manoeuvre Vessel–Medium as a case study, this analysis highlights key milestones, capability-building lessons and innovation pathways, offering insights into how Australia can strengthen its independent ship design expertise for future naval requirements.

Navantia Australia’s Kodal Uncrewed Landing Craft demonstrates how autonomy could reshape amphibious operations through high-speed, high-payload and low-crewed mission delivery. Exploring disruptive naval innovation, the research highlights key technology challenges, operational advantages and future warfare applications, offering valuable insight into how uncrewed vessels may transform maritime logistics and combat capability.

Drone carrier warships are emerging as a compelling vision for next-generation naval power. This concept study explores the design of a multi-mission surface combatant built around uncrewed systems, highlighting the engineering, operational and software-development challenges involved. Updated design tools and scalable modelling approaches demonstrate how future fleets could gain greater flexibility, reach and combat effectiveness.